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Ford to supply new EcoBoost V6-turbo race engine for United SportsCar Championship

September 30, 2013

The new Ford DP will make its competition debut at the 2014 season-opening Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway on Jan. 25-26, and will run the entire 12-race United SportsCar Championship season. Photo by Ford Racing

Ford Racing on Tuesday announced it will supply a new EcoBoost 3.5-liter turbocharged V6 race engine for Michael Shank Racing's Daytona Prototype entry in next season's Tudor United SportsCar Championship.

The new engine -- built by Ford partner Roush Yates Racing Engines, which also produces NASCAR engines -- will make its competition debut at the 2014 season-opening Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway on Jan. 25-26, and will run the entire 12-race season. MSR is the first team to commit to using the powerplant, though Ford hopes to sign others prior to the season.

Also shown on Tuesday, a new Ford-inspired Riley Technologies Daytona Prototype chassis will accompany the EcoBoost in Daytona. The car “features enhanced Ford production vehicle design cues created by lead Ford production designer Garen Nicoghosian with aerodynamic support from Ford Racing chief aerodynamicist Bernie Marcus,” according to a Ford statement. However, definitive bodywork for Daytona Prototypes remains to be seen once USCC officials settle on aerodynamic specifications in their quest to balance performance against the LMP2 cars they will race against next year in the new combined Grand-Am/American Le Mans Series organization.

Notably, Ford's V6 will face off against a field of V8-powered Daytona Prototypes, though with Grand-Am's history of performance balancing in the now-defunct Rolex Series, theoretically there should be little to no difference in performance between the EcoBoost engine and its competition.

The direct-injection engine -- based on the production version used in Ford's Taurus SHO, Lincoln MKS and Ford F-150 -- will for the first time hit the track at Daytona on Oct. 9, when a joint effort between MSR, Ford Racing and Continental Tire aims to set a new Daytona track record by eclipsing the 210.364-mph lap set on Feb. 9, 1987, by NASCAR champion Bill Elliott, who pushed his Ford Thunderbird to the top of the speed charts in Daytona 500 qualifying. Sports-car racing regular Colin Braun will handle driving duties.

“At Ford Racing, we really put great emphasis on racing production-based vehicles, as well as production-based technologies,” said Ford Racing boss Jamie Allison. “We're proud to bring a direct-injected, twin-turbo 3.5-liter V6 EcoBoost engine to the United SportsCar Championship in a field of competitive V8-powered entries. We want to show Ford EcoBoost's total performance capabilities as an engine that provides both performance and fuel economy, on and off the track.

“Ford Motor Company has taken today's Daytona Prototype and injected into it unique Ford attributes and unique Ford design characteristics. This EcoBoost-powered car is obviously adapted for racing applications with racing controls, but ultimately we're running what we're selling and selling what we're running.”

“This engine is the future,” said Doug Yates, CEO of Roush Yates Racing Engines. “[It] includes all the newest technologies: direct injection, turbocharging and high efficiency. We're looking at taking it to the next level through this sports-car racing program.”

MSR team owner Michael Shank said, “It's really a privilege to have an opportunity to put your name in the record books like this. It is almost inconceivable that this [Daytona speed] record has stood for such a long time, so it's pretty special to be involved. We worked a long time to develop our relationship with Ford to be in a position to take on projects like this. Anytime you can get in the record books, it is a great opportunity and just builds on what this company has done.”